Index for numbers



July 31, 1923.

o. MOORE INDEX FOR NUMBERS Filed Jan. 5 1921 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 July 31, .1923. I V 1,463,656

0. L. MOORE I I NDEX FOR NUMBERS Filed Jan. 5. 1921 s Sheets-Sheet E .July 31, 1923. 1,463,656

' O. L. MOORE 7 INDEX-FOR NUMBERS I Filed Jan. 5, 192; 3 Sheets-Sheet' 5 Fig.5. 7

Inn/eni'on:

Patented July 31, 1923.

PATET FFIQE.

OSBORNE LEE MOORE, OF JEFFERSON, MISSOURI.

INDEX FOB. NUMBERS.

Application filed January 3, 1921. Serial No. 434,643.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OSBORNE LEE Moore, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of Jefferson, in the county of ole and State of Missouri, have invented certain' new and useful Improvements in Indexes for Numbers, of which the following is a specification; v

This invention is a means for keeping records wherever a double or otherwise plural identifying number is connected with the same object, as, for instance, in the case of motor-cars, excavating machines, traction engines, watches, revolvers, typewriters, inultigraphmachines, adding machines, etc.

By law in some jurisdictions, the secretary of state or other oilicer is required to record the motor number in connection with the car number or license number of each motor vehicle for which a license is issued. Such motor numbers are the manufacturers num-v bers. The license number is the number of the license tag and license issued by the proper authority. Magnetos, distributors,

crank-cases, horns, etc., bear distinguishing numbers recorded under such key. In other may be made the key and the corresponding I other kind of numbers or the license numbers or both may be recorded thereunder.

Again, if two or more kinds of numbers are recorded under the main key series of numbers, two or more inverted indexes may be prepared, using blanks and the structure herein set forth. 7 r p The recent great increase of the number of motor-vehicles and the like,the growth in the number of accidents thereby, and the large and increased volume of crime in which they figure all make the keeping of accurate information assisting in their identification and tracing more necessary and render it important that such data shall be kept in easily intelligible aud accessible form, so that a long distance telephone police inquiry or the like can be answered with the least possible delay.

The record blanks and books hereby rovided are suitable not alone for state 0 ces, such as that of the secretary ofstate, but

by the preservation of the corresponding watch-case and watchmovement numbers and the names of manufacturers and purchasers etc. They may, also, be used by manufacturers of excavating machines, in which the machine bears one number and the en gine another. Such records enable manufacturers to keep track of their machines 7 either when only partly paid Tor or when stolenv and, also, in filling orders for repair parts.

Persons skilled in keeping police records 7 will perceive a multitude of uses for these records, greatly aiding in the-solution of crimes and detection of criminals--for instance, by recording numbers of revolvers or automatic pistols and their parts, the numbers o'f typewriters, adding machines, and the like and their parts, and of other portable and frequently-stolen articles.

Large manufacturers of watches, in-' surance companies (who trace stolen articles), and many others having to dowith numbered articles will derive benefit from the use of these record blanks and books.

Inthe accompanying drawings forming' part of this specification, in which like numbers of reference denote like parts;

wherever they occur,-

Figure 1 represents one page ojr sheet of the blank;

. Figure 2 represents a plurality of such; sheets'arranged 1n superimposed relation to form the pages of a book; and

Figure 3 is a persp'ect ve view of ia plurality of sheets or pages of such blanks, with,v

a thumb or catch index in thefmargin.

For the purposes of an'example, weshallassume that the blanks illustrated in the drawings are to be used in keeping data concerning motor-cars. We shall assume that the top row of numbers represents motor-car llU license numbers. 7 The numbers-ofthis row are arranged in groups or series which we shall call the key series, each series comprising key-numbers rangingtfrom 0 to 9, as.

illustrated. As above explained, this key series may be derived from other sub ectmatter or sources than from license numbers.

Superimposed above the said key series of numbers is a blank space 1, adapted to receive in writing bv pen or pencil or the impression of a rubber stamp or the llke group numbers characterizing the entries thereunder -as"l0,000 or 100,000 or 1,350,000

or whatnot; In Figure 1,;the figures 340,000

and 3&1,000 represent each group numbers.

convenient, and, therefore, preferable, division'ot each page or sheet 1s, as shown in the drawings, into two groups of spaces 2,

each group being headed by a group number and adapted to receive one thousand heads a column'5. Each cross row of spaces 2' is designated by one-0f the supplementary keyQnumbers inv the column and similarly in the columns 6 and 7, respectively, the said numbers ranging from 0 to 99. Thus, each space Qbelbn'gs to some license number and 'is intended to receive some motor number written or stamped or pasted therein, theinformationrecorded being that the motor number of the motor in thecar "for which license so-and-so was issued is thus-and-so. Atleast, one columnof numbers, such, for instance, as columns 6 and 3, is necessarytor each of the above-mentioned groups of spaces, but column 7, or its equivalent, is

highly desirable, also, as an eye-steadier or as a means of locating the approprlatespace under one of the higher key numbers in the hey series. For the lefthand group of spaces 2 this function "is performed by column 3.

At the lowerpart of the sheet is left 'a plain space 8, adapted tobe fingered in turning the pages and to become dogseared (if need be), rather than the lower part of the record portion. f T he'eyel'ets 9 are adapted toreceivebind- I ing devices for attachment of individual inthe form eta regularly-bound permanent book. The looseleaf forni will in most stances be found preferable, because no more sheets such as herein illustrated and de- The sheets scribed 'into 'a'looseleaf book. printed andr uled as herein llustrated and dBSCI'lbECl may,-however, bebound together pages need be purchased-or used than are I necessary and their number canbe added to from time to time when needed; whereas,

' Another advantage of the looseleaf form is that the marginal index 10 can be best out and formed when loose leaves are used. I

Gne advantage of this form of index is that a supply of sheets caabe'procured without any notches therein-tor the index 10. .This etlects economy in purchasing." can be added to the book'- grads: ally as required, ,Thus the book may-be started as a record for100,000 numbers,"but

Then they can grow to 1,000,000 without inconvenience; because as many sheets as ultimately are necessary can be added gradually. The cut outs 11 can be made of any desired length or shortness, so that the lowest part ofeach vindeaprojection 12 projects from underneath the one} immediately thereabove and all others thereabove, thus allowing the index numbers on-eachsuch tab 1.2 to be read. Each projection 12 atl'ords space on which is written the group number "appearing above the first groupof entries on'the lefthand sheet or page illustrated in Figure 1 and theblosing number on the'righ=;l1and sheet or pageassociat-ed therewith. When the book is startedit may consist of one sheet. The cut out ll will be very long, almost the length of the page fromtop "to bottom and the remaining tab or projection 1'?- will be quite short,'as clearly appears in l igure 2.- The cut-out'l l in second page will be slightly shorter and the; projection 12 slightly longer, and-soon. If awhole book were purchased providing possible space for 1,000,000 numbers, and'yet only one-tenth orone-quarter of it were used,

great waste Wouldbe the result, whereas by adding only one sheet at a'time and making the pro ect1ons l2 ofonlysuch, size as is necessary and Wlll permit any additional ones to show, a book is ultimately produced that is only, the exact size required; 1 Fi ure 2 illustrates a plurality of pages-pro viding a book for indeiring 48,000 numbers (there are twelve index tabs'l2, and eachsheet bears spaces and numbers for. indexing two thousand numbers, and each tab 12 serves for two sheets) but this isonly illustrative, and the number ofgro'ups of 1,000

It will be understood from thdmanufac xibers on a sheetniay be increased and the v to pr'oj ect from turin q" standpointfthat j the sheets are quite a' bee This last statement may be true whether the sheets are furnished by the manufacturer loose or bound. The eyelets 9 may be punched or formed either by the manufacturer or the user. The group numbers written in the space 1 will characterize each series of integers appearing thereunder, as, for imtance, if in Figure 1 there be written in space 1 the numbers 340,000 and 3a1,000,

will be understood that the first column under 0 on that page relates to numbers from 10,000 to 3 l0,O99, Each successive column increases the number by 100 so that the closing number at the bottom of the .age should be M1999. This effects the above-mentioned economy in printing and purchasing, as each sheet is complete in itself to utllize any key-number which in turn transforms any of the ordinary serles of integers into a special key series for the printed on the sheet and fixing the value of purposes hereinabove described.

The use of the blank to record, for example, the motor numbers of cars corresponding to certain license numbers is illustrated in Fig. 1, by reference to which figure it will be observed that the number 241 entered in the space of the first column under in alinement with minor key series #68, is the motor number corresponding to the license number 340363. Similarly, the motor numbers of cars having license numbers 340,381; 340,631 and M0845 are found to be entered as 703; 125 and 40, respectively.

The binding through eyelets 9 maybe of any suitable kind, either temporary or permanent, but the eyelets 9 are preferably formed with a slit 13, enabling the removal ofa sheet. This slit 13 will be omitted for permanent binding, and other modes of binding may be used. as, for instance, the various forms of stitching used in ordinary blankbooks.

Each number in the key series is located at the top of a ruled column that it dominates for major indication, the said column being divided by ruling into spaces 2 adapted to receive written or stamped or pasted numbers and each of the said subdivisions or spaces 2 being'controlled for minor indication by a printed number in alinement therewithnreferably in horizontal alinement, there being a plurality of such spaces 2 (preferably one hundrec in number) in alinement (preferably vertical alinement) with each number of the said key se ies and a plurality of such spaces 2 in alinement with each number used for minor indication, there being preferably one such space 2 for each of the numbers of the main key series and there being preferably ten such numbers, repeated as often as may be desired on each sheet or page and there being preferably one hundred numbers, from 0 to 99, a vertical column for such minor indication,

space representing an identifying number the terminal integer of which is designated by the number'of the space and the next preceding integer designated by the number of the column, and a denominating number the column numbers. 7

2. In a record book, an entry sheet ruled to provide a group of entry spaces arranged in columns, each space being representative of an identifying number, a minor key series of numbers for indicating the value of each space with respect to its sequence in the column, a main key series of numbers for indicating the value of each column with respect to its sequence in the group, and a groupcharacterizing number for indicating the value of the group with respect to the entry sheet. V i

,3. In a record book, an entry sheet ruled to provide one or more groups of entry spaces with the spaces of each groupv arranged in columns and being respectively representative of an identifying number, main and minor key series of numbers for each group, each number in the main key series being located at the top ofa column of spaces that it dominates for major indic a' tion and each number in the minor key series being in alinement with a cross row 0 spaces which it controls for minor indications, and a group-denominating number to be read in connection with the main and minor key numbers jointly designating a common space for characterizing the value c of the identifying number represented, by such space.

4:. In a record book, an entry sheet ruled sent the terminal integer of the identifying number corresponding with each space in the said row, said minor series including numbers from 0 to 99, a main seriesof key neeeese numbers heading each group with each numher in the said serles heading a column of spaces and representing the integer (of. the

identifying number) next preceding the terminal integer indicated by the minor key number oi each space in the column, said main series inelu'd-ingnum'bers from 0 to 9,

signature.

OSBORNE MOORE. 

